Not many of us are able to take our holidays during the summer months for whatever reason.  Taking a short break in autumn to get some of the summer sun is another option.  We have found five places in Europe and elsewhere that offers excellent autumn sunshine at some of the hotest hotels and resorts.  Whether its luxury, relaxation, party or sports these locations offers it.

While some ski resorts in the Alps have to wait for the peak of the winter season to offer the good white stuff others are already in full swing.  So if you want to take an early ski break this winter, why wait when you can be on the pistes  before the madness of the height of the season.  We have found five resorts located above 2000m that have what you want for an early ski break.

May Day otherwise known as international workers’ day or Labour Day in short, is celebrated around the globe in different styles.   Unlike here in the UK where you have the add skirmishes between police and protester; elsewhere people celebrate or commemorate the occasion differently.  You could take a short break to Paris, Beijing, Havana and Pyongyang, North Korea to be part of the occasion.

South Africa’s Limpopo provence is well known for the Extreme 19th at Legend - it is one of the world's most difficult golfing holes.  To tee off for the 19th you are taken up in an helicopter to the longest par three in the world (361m), 1,400ft up on top of Hangclip Mountain, the helicopter is the only way of getting there. Should you make a hole in one, you get a cheque for $1 million. It is extreme but it’s worth a try.

Each winter skiers and snowboarders are faced the options of deciding which ski resort to go, where they will have a good time and guarantee snow.  We have found eight destinations in Europe and America that will give you a winter break to remember. The is the slow, busy, traditional, modern and old depending on your taste and how you want to spend your winter break.

If you mention the words Dominican Republic and Haiti you will hear more of your friends saying that they have been or planning to visit the former than the latter. Both countries or on the same island but because of Haiti’s past many European and American have stayed away.  The recent earthquake five years ago didn’t help either.

Nestled on the border between France and Spain, Andorra is an excellent ski destination, whether you are a pro or a first-timer, party animal or just want to take it easy on the slopes.  Whatever you want from your ski holiday, you’ll find it in Andorra.

HOTEL FARINET, VERBIER SWITZERLAND
Despite its exclusive reputation and sky-high prices, Verbier is still one of Switzerland’s most animated resorts.  Although it will never be cheap, these days it’s no longer all about paying 200CHF for bottles of vodka in over-rated nightclubs.  The main après-ski focus is at Hotel Farinent in a prime location close to the lifts.

FREESTYLE SNOWBOARDING CAMP WHISTLER, CANADA
If you want to ramp up your tricks and nail some extreme moves in one week, Core Snowboard Camps in Whistler are a pretty slick bet.  The Nintendo Terrain Park offers six parks of different levels, a superpipe and a snowcross track, and if that tops, hip jumps, spines, rails and fun boxes are your bag, Core's pro snowboarder coaches will show you the ropes. Groups are no bigger than four, and instructors use video analysis - as well as a degree of good-natured ribbing to show you the way.

Many people assume Siberia is an inhospitable wasteland of frequented by bears and convicts, largely due to the more than 14 million people who were deported to the Gulag prison camps there between 1929 and 1953. But head to teh eastern slopes of Russia yourself and you will soon find this assumption is incorrect.  Stretching from the Ural Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, Siberia covers a whopping 5.2 million square miles. It accounts for 77 per cent of Russia's territory but is home to only 25 per cent of its population. Meaning, lot of uncrowded slopes!